The Trials, Stories, and Photographs of a New York City Writer, Photojournalist & New York Yellow Taxi Hack...bringing you the New York City stories he reports which have crowned him The King of New York Hacks.

KING OF NEW YORK HACKS

KNIGHTS OF THE ROUND TABLE

Share

Twitter Follow

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Grand Central, Beer Goggle Santa and Bloomingdales. Enjoy !!

Grand Central Station.....A Masterpiece

Click on the pics to enlarge and appreciate.

CORNELIUS VANDERBILT

“

If I had learned education, I would not have had time to learn anything else.

”

Born on Staten Island, Vanderbilt began working on ferries in and around New York as a young boy, quitting school at age 11. By age 16 he was operating his own business—after having borrowed money from his mother—ferrying freight and passengers between Staten Island and Manhattan. During the War of 1812, he received a government contract to supply the forts around New York City. He operated sailing schooners, which is where he gained his nickname of "Commodore."

On December 19, 1813, Cornelius Vanderbilt married his cousin and neighbor, Sophia Johnson (1795-1868), daughter of his aunt Elizabeth Hand Johnson. He and his wife had 13 children, 1 died in childhood.

You have undertaken to cheat me. I won't sue you, for the law is too slow. I will ruin you.—-Cornelius Vanderbilt, 1853 (in a letter to former business associates Morgan & Garrison

In October 1871, Vanderbilt struck up a partnership with the New York and New Haven Railroad to join with the railroads he owned to consolidate operations at one terminal at East 42nd Street called Grand Central Depot, which was the original Grand Central Terminal, where his statue reigns today. The glass roof of the depot collapsed during a blizzard on the same day Vanderbilt died in 1877. The station was not replaced until 1903-1913.

Never knew that.

...and here he is Cornelius himself under a very large wreath. I once had his granddaughter Wendy in my taxi and as we took the same route I commented to her how I grew up in Staten Island and visited her ancestors mausoleum which is a work of art at Moravian Cemetery in Staten Island. She commented to me that she and her family were always proud that the city preserved what he built. She was a charming woman and I hope I get her in my taxi again.

Now , lets do a 360 and REALLY appreciate MY FIRST DRUNK SANTA ever in my taxi.

Thank you , thank you, please ...no please, everyone stop clapping and get back to the blog.

I got in line as 2 cabs pulled up to this Santa and as they pulled off leaving Santa Claus without a ride I felt the NEED to get Santa to his destination regardless of his state of mind.

ITS SANTA DAMMIT !!! .....so I was the lucky one to pick Santa up. Beer Goggles and all.

A Christmas classic indeed.

Before I let Santa in I locked the doors and asked if he was going to puke as he hiccuped where his destination was which was believe it or not Macy's at 34th St...His answer was "I did that already , don't worry about it" A Miracle to 34th St indeed was occurring in my cab tonight ...a drunk guy ....NOT going to throw up...and Kris Kringle heading towards the grandpooba of Santa gatherings round the world !!! He got in , asked me kindly to put some rock n roll on and BLAST it ...He gave me a station number , I cranked it up , he said "F*** yeah , thats what Santa needs" and then passed out. Tears flowed down my cheeks at the fact that Santa was sleeping in my Taxi....and here he is sleeping with his beer goggles up against the partition. It truly is Christmas.

....and he sinks lower and lower as I hold my breath that he doesn't puke...SANTA don't puke !!!He awoke exactly at where I was gong to leave him at a red light across the street from Macy's , thanked me for stopping and cranking the music , wished me a Merry Christmas , tipped me $5 and exited the cab to a gaggle of people trying to get an empty taxi and coherently put his beer goggles on and walked into the night....my new customers asked " Was Santa drunk?". I replied , "no he was Shitcanned"....BUT he was Santa so let it go !! ...and they did.

The front of Bloomingdales.

The back of Bloomingdales.

Bloomindales has speakers set up which play Tony Bennett tracks off of his new CD, "A Swingin' Christmas featuring the Count Basie Big Band" as you walk by all the decorated windows. Tony was from where my father and mother grew up and I grew up a little in Astoria,Queens NYC. I saw him perform in Vegas at The Desert Inn for the Millennium with his daughter as the opening act and Mr.Warmth Don Rickles at a table right next to me. He actually sang a song without a microphone to show how the Desert Inn acoustics were so well built that he didn't need a microphone. He sounded great.

...or just click on the video and listen as you scroll through Bloomie's with The King.....Soooooo what are ya gonna buy me?

Click on the photos to enlage and enjoy.

Jingle Bells.

Jingle Bells photo # 2.

Silver Bells.

I'll be home for Christmas.

The Christmas Waltz.

Christmastime is here.

Have yourself a merry little Christmas.

Santa Claus is coming to town ..why?? BECAUSE THE KING PICKED HIS DRUNK ASS UP !!!

Oh Christmas tree.

Well, thanks for visiting Bloomingdale's with me , I had a grand time and appreciate all the gift cards you'll be sending my way ....I may not work at Bloomie's but I am the King Of New York Hacks. Hope all your shopping is done and as my fellow brother Mad D.C. Cabbie always says, please don't forget the homeless. Peace out.

I really mean it ...the King was homeless once ...and it ain't no fucking picnic. Reach out my brothers and sisters, its the holidays and it is COLD here .

Nuff said....Thanks for stopping by everyone , next stop maybe Rockefeller Center...or who knows ?? Its a fun ride no matter !!!!

back front, i dunno which is which for bloomie's. nice stuff on vanderbuilt, specially since it's my b-day too! i might find an old grand central pick somewhere. i thought i saw an old pic of it recently.

I'll be back. I need some time to think about what I want to say. Give me a day or so to absorb what I've read. Trust me, I'll be back.

Thanks for wanting the remote. Just so you know, it won't do you any good!!! Good luck with that honey!

This blog is amazing. I'm from NY, upstate (The Catskills) and it's like coming home. I just want to cry. I miss it you know, but somehow you capture all that I miss and bring a comfort I haven't felt in a very long time. I love your photos and love your writing. I'm so glad you aren't homeless and that you've found your voice. You have no idea how very much that means to me. I deal with homeless at the park where I feed the ferals every day, and it is always my sincere hope they will find their way. I'm hoping you will share your story and help me inspire a homeless person I love to find his or her way. It's a very small world, isn't it? I love that about life. We all discover one another for a reason. I'm so grateful I found you. I'm crying. Not because I'm sad, because I'm happy. You probably already know, I'm not religious, but believe someone is helping us! Thank you for coming into my life, even if it was by IV's remote!!! Hey, not funny!!!

OK, so I'm not going to kick your ass now. LOL I LOVE your blog. I've only been to New York once but fell in love and long to go back. Thanks for the great tours, especially now at Christmas time. I love it. And for the reminder to give back.

Every flight I take, I take the sick bag from the seat pocket. And when i get home, I keep the seat pockets in the back of my cab stocked with inflight magazines and sick bags.

You get to spot those with potential, and when they get in - if I let them in - I let them know the drill. "If we need to stop suddenly, just say the word and you'll see just how fast a cabbie can stop. There are sick bags in the seat pockets if need be. And if you don't make it, there's a fifty dollar fee for soiling the cab."

It's been a while since I had anyone sick up, but plenty have asked me to stop in a hurry. I turn the meter off and let them get it all out of their system, and hand them the box of tissues when they get back in. Better the rosebushes of some random householder than my pristine cab.

How in God's name you came my way - I have no friggin' idea. But it must be an early Christmas present because your blog rules! The pics are jumpin' out at me....all colorful and holiday and brilliant.

King, Never fear I won't forget my city's homeless I worked them twice this week.. It's the most rewarding thing I have done. thanks for coming by today. I love your visits and your blog.Bless you my friend,V

Woa! What a cool Santa you picked up!(^o^). NY seems exciting. I've never been there and I do hope to visit someday.Thank you for stopping by my blog and inviting here. This is nice blog and got me so moved that I am going to be follower right now...

I'm in the Philippines and we're really big on Christmas but I've never seen a "Santa" while growing up. They didn't have Santas in the malls back in the day but now they do. I used to watch holiday flicks like Home Alone and wished we had Santa's like you do over there.

first time seeing your blog, as you left a comment on mine. thank you! i'm chris, known as C, nice to meet ya. i also am from upstate NY, malone, up near lake placid. but NYC has always been close to me heart, as my father took me there when i was a little girl. it was amazing and some of the good memories i have of him. he drove trailways bus and took me on tours with him. the 1st time i walked through china town when i was 5-6, i knew i was a city girl. i felt like i belonged there. roaming through your blog took me back, and made me feel warm. new yorkers are the best. and god bless your heart for all the random acts of kindness you do. you are an angel. i think those of us that have lost everything, at some point, then picked ourselves up and started over, are the strong people with the most caring hearts, cuz we've been there and know how it feels to be on the other side. so maybe the purpose of our losses and/or tragedies, are so we can help others, down the line, and have the compassion they need to receive. ya never know what difference we may make in someone's life with just a howdy, or smile, or 5 bucks. ya just never know. merry christmas, sir, you ARE the king of nyc hacks. ;)and god keep you safe always.

Poor Santa...maybe he got peed on one too many times that day? Love your blog and enjoyed learning about the history of the Vanderbilts. Thanks for checkin out my blog and hope to see you back! Happy holidays! ; )

You've added another book to my reading list, "The New York Chronology"

Vanderbilt made me think of Schif, Harriman, and Seligman. I couldn't recall who worked for Harriman, Schif or Seligman? So I started doing some googling. I see this blip that makes it look like Vanderbilt dug the first tunnel under Broadway, so now I have to read the book.

Facebook- ADD ME ! You will be updated daily...to mostly...or partly to rainy at the least !! ;P

The King Of New York Hacks

Watching the city and bringing it to you.....I am The King of New York.

Tumblr

http://kingofnewyorkhacks.tumblr.com/

Pinterest

COPYRIGHT DISCLAIMER !!!

All graphics, photographs, and text appearing on the KING OF NEW YORK HACKS home page and subsequent official Web pages are protected by copyright. Redistribution or commercial use is prohibited without express written permission.